Roger quickly took off the collar on Bandit's neck and put it in his pocket.
Bandit seemed completely unaware of Roger's actions, and didn't even look up at Roger when the collar was removed, as if he didn't care about what he was doing.
"This cat wouldn't be..."
Roger tried to pinch Bandit's paws, but the latter was completely unmoved.
But it also stopped staring at the newspaper, just maintaining its previous posture, quietly lying there in a daze.
Roger frowned, and immediately his mind moved, and he tried to gently scratch Bandit's right thigh.
This time the tabby cat did have a certain reaction, and reflexively retracted its right leg.
“This is a bit of a problem.”
As a good youth who grew up in the information age, Roger knew very well how dangerous tactile dysfunction was.
Because touch, especially the sensation of pain, is actually a self-protection mechanism of the body. For example, being scalded by hot water or pricked by a needle on the hand will cause a tingling sensation that will make people reflexively retract their hand to avoid further injury.
Not to mention that tactile feedback will also help the life form maintain postural stability, whether it is normal walking or maintaining a sense of balance, the lack of touch will cause extremely serious consequences.
According to the description, the side effect of wearing the "Scholar's Ring" for too long is "unable to produce normal emotions and touch within 12 to 24 hours", but Roger did not know what emotions Bandit lacked, what types of touch, and even did not know whether these missing items would change over time.
This uncertainty is more harmful than the lack of touch itself.
But fortunately, this adverse reaction will only last for 12 to 24 hours. Before confirming that Bandit has recovered his sense, Roger must keep an eye on it and protect it.
“It seems that I still underestimated this thing before, and I should be more careful when buying Magical Items in the future.
Considering that he had an appointment with Klein, Roger could only try to take Bandit to the other party's house to keep an eye on it, but in this case, he needed to ask the other party's opinion first to avoid being rude.
He put on his clothes, carefully picked up Bandit, came to Narcissus Street No. 2, and used one hand to knock on the door.
The one who opened the door was Melissa. She first greeted Roger politely, and then looked at the little cat in the latter's arms.
“Oh, what happened to Bandit?”
The girl immediately asked with concern.
“It accidentally ate some medicine it shouldn't have eaten at noon, and it seems that there is a problem with its sense of touch.
“I took it to see a doctor, and the doctor said it was temporary, but it needs to be observed, and the owner can't leave.”
Hearing Melissa's exclamation, Benson and Klein, who were wiping their hands on their aprons, also ran over.
Roger frowned and told the two of them about Bandit's situation again.
Who knew that Klein seemed very happy, and he waved his hand:
“Welcome, welcome, I can pack some food for Bandit too.”
Benson and Melissa also had no objections, which made Roger very moved.
“It's really a warm Family…”
He said a word of apology, and carried the little cat into Moretti's House.
In the two days when the two families had just moved to Narcissus Street, Roger had also come to Moretti's House to visit the Neighbor.
But compared to then, there were a small number of decorations and many items full of life in the current Living Room, and on the dining table were some meat that was being pickled and cut vegetables.
“Sorry, dinner will have to wait a while.”
Benson looked at Klein's busy back, he smiled embarrassedly, and poured a cup of Sweet Iced Tea that Klein had prepared in advance for Roger, and put it on the table.
“You're welcome, I came early anyway.”
Roger took off his coat, put it on the floor in the corner of Moretti's House, and formed a stable ring, and then took off his Wide-brimmed Hat and put the little cat in it.
After doing all this, he breathed a sigh of relief, returned to the sofa and sat down, and chatted with Benson.
During this time, Melissa took the initiative to sit next to Bandit, watching it, and gently flipping through some mechanical design sketches in her hand.
“Benson, I see that your Younger Sister seems to like mechanical things very much.”
Roger sipped a cup of Black Tea with a sweet and sour flavor and a faint lemon aroma, and said with a smile.
“Well, Melissa has been good at these things since she was a child, and she once independently repaired the pocket watch that never moved left by her father.”
Benson was a little emotional:
“Her dream is to become a Steam Mechanic, and she has been working hard for this.”
Roger nodded. According to his understanding, Melissa was indeed very interested in Gears, Clockwork, and other Mechanical Device, and she was admitted to the Steam and Mechanical Department of Tingen Technical School through her own efforts, and even became a Sequence 9 "Scholar".
“Dinner is served.”
At this time, Klein had already prepared a table full of dishes and greeted everyone to sit down.
Roger looked at it and felt it was quite rich.
Salted Cod, Dicy Pie, Braised Fresh Vegetables, Pea Stewed Lamb, Apple Pie, Mashed Potatoes... In addition, there was a Huaxia-style Tomato Stewed Beef Brisket and a Fried Rice with Eggs. These two seemed to be specially made to entertain Roger.
He nodded with some relief, it seemed that the life of Moretti's House had improved a lot these days.
“Thank you for your trouble.” Roger whispered.
“Draft Beer, or Sweet Iced Tea?” Klein took off his apron and asked with a smile.
“Draft Beer, thank you.” Roger replied.
Klein nodded, and poured a glass of Draft Beer for him, Benson, and himself, and also poured a glass of Sweet Iced Tea for Melissa.
The four of them prayed devoutly to the Goddess of the Night at the same time, and then clinked glasses and started eating.
Klein obviously put a lot of thought into this meal, and the taste was very good, and everyone praised it.
Especially the Fried Rice with Eggs and Tomato Stewed Beef Brisket, which made Roger quite emotional.
In this world, it is not easy to eat these dishes from his hometown.
After Three Rounds of Drinks, the men were all a little tipsy and began to talk about the recent international situation.
“...Have you heard? Recently, the Fosaque Empire has been very hostile to Loen, but because of our latest Ironclad Battleship's equipment and the Navy's strength has greatly increased, they have been slow to act.
“To be honest, I really don't want to fight. Both Fosas and Loen are regional powers. Once a war breaks out, it is not ruled out that it will evolve into a World War... Life has finally gotten better recently, and I hope that those Woolly Monkeys with IQs that are worrying don't act impulsively...”
Benson complained halfway, and hiccuped.
Klein nodded in agreement: “But Benson, you know, those guys don't care about the lives of the people. With the rapid development of Industry in recent years, many workers in Backlund, even child laborers, lack rest, and some people have contracted unclear illnesses... I also heard that almost every day people go missing in the private sector, and many people report it to the police, but most of them are lost in the Sea.”
Following Benson's words, Klein seemingly casually led the conversation to the unfinished topic at the Tarot Club, and then glanced at Roger, as if expecting him to speak.
“Yes, so I have been working hard to study... because this is also an opportunity for us, an opportunity to change the future Destiny of the entire society.”
Benson didn't notice his Younger Brother's actions, and what he was referring to in his words was naturally the upcoming Civil Servant exam.
Although not many people know about this at the moment, he did not avoid Roger because of this.
“Actually... there are huge conspiracies hidden behind these Abnormal phenomena, and what we see is only the tip of the iceberg.
“What everyone thinks is only what some people want us to think. Before the problem really breaks out, few people will realize the seriousness of the matter.”
Roger pondered for a moment, and suddenly said.
“Mettis, in your opinion, what is the truth of the matter?”
Klein leaned forward and looked at Roger expectantly.